14 Drink Ideas For Sober October

Robyn Simms, Co-Founder of Square Root Soda

I've been sober for almost two years and my advice for those heading for a night out is to always plan ahead. Take a look at where you might want to go out and see what non-alcoholic options they have on the menu. Or use Club Soda Guide to find places near you that serve great booze-free options and plan what you're going to order. If I can’t find any information about a venue, I’ve been known to be slightly cheeky and bring my own option in my bag to add to drinks at the venue: it's better than just being stuck with a lime and soda!

If you’re hosting this month, remember: good quality citrus makes the world of difference to any drink. You can totally transform a tonic water with a slice of fragrant grapefruit or orange, so keep them on hand at home.

For more drinks ideas and to taste the cocktails below, visit Square Root Soda's Temperance Bar at Seven Dials Market.

Apple, Cardamom & Lime Soda

INGREDIENTS

700g of fresh apples (I like to use a mix of varieties like Bramley, Cox and Discovery)
1 lime
40g of caster sugar
4 cardamom pods
Soda water

METHOD

1. Add the caster sugar and 100ml of water into a pan. Turn on the heat and stir the liquid until the sugar is fully dissolved and the mixture is starting to simmer.

2. Break your cardamom pods down by covering them in a clean tea towel and bashing them with a rolling pin or similar. Pour your broken pods into the warm sugar syrup in your pan and turn off the heat.

3. Cover the pan and leave to cool completely.

4. While the syrup is cooling, juice or pulp the apples using a smoothie maker or a home juicer.

5. Squeeze your lime into the apple juice. 

6. Pour in your sugar syrup and stir to combine. Once this is done, you have your cordial. You can refrigerate until you’re ready to serve. 

7. Serve by adding 100ml of cordial to 200ml of soda water in a glass with ice.

Negroni Spritz

INGREDIENTS

For the negroni syrup (makes 700ml):

1 orange
1 grapefruit
25ml of balsamic vinegar
180g of white sugar
400ml of water
8 juniper berries
2 cardamom pods
4 allspice berries
3 cloves
4 cubeb peppercorns
6g of dried hibiscus
Tonic water
Ice cubes
Slice of orange

METHOD

1. Measure out all your spices and give them a quick blitz in a food processor to break them down a little, so you’ll get more of the aromatics into your negroni syrup.

2. Using a vegetable peeler, remove the rind from the orange and the grapefruit. Next, slice them in half and, using a fork, juice the halves into a saucepan that has a lid. 

3. Add 400ml of water and the 180g of sugar and gently warm to dissolve the sugar. Once the sugar is dissolved, turn up the heat and bring the liquid up to a simmer.

4. When your liquid is simmering away, add in the broken-down spices and grapefruit and orange rind, turn off the heat and pop the lid on. Your syrup now needs to sit for an hour and a half to infuse.

5. Once this is done, strain the spices from the syrup using a sieve and discard. 

6. Serve by measuring out 25ml of negroni syrup into a highball glass filled with ice. Top up with tonic water and serve with a big slice of fresh orange. There are so many tonic waters out there to choose from – just pick your favourite or get a selection in and experiment with the different flavours. Your syrup will keep up to four weeks in the fridge if it’s in a sealed container.

‘Nojito’

INGREDIENTS

1 lime
1 tbsp of sugar
4 sprigs of fresh mint
Soda water
Crushed ice

METHOD

1. Cut your lime in half and squeeze the juice of one of the halves into a tall glass. Cut the other half of the lime into two wedges.

2. Add the sugar and 1 tbsp of water into the glass and muddle (if you have a muddler) or stir to combine. 

3. Add three sprigs of the mint to the glass and muddle or stir those to release the flavour. 

4. Cover with crushed ice and stir a little to distribute the mint.

5. Top with soda water and the two lime wedges, giving them a squeeze as they go into the glass. Garnish with the final mint sprig.